Dit zijn de afstanden die er per dag gefietst zijn. Dag 4 was de rustdag.Dag 5 en 6 waren de dagen dat we rond hebben gereden in de Veluwe zonder bagage.
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Iceland - Day 20 : Arctic foxes
At night I again woke up at 1:30, but it was cloudy. In the morning it was by far the coldest it had been during the entire trip and close to freezing. While packing I wished I had brought gloves. I knew I needed to walk far this day. I had initially thought the bus would leave at 2 o'clock the following day, but I had discovered it actually left at 12:10. I also realized where the 2 km difference between my map and the traffic signs came from, apparently the bus stop was 2 km further than the intersection I was heading to. That meant it was still 44 km away, of which I hoped to walk at least 34 today. The main road I was on wasn't very adventurous but allowed me to travel fast. It remained cold and cloudy. Around 11:00 I had walked 12 km and had my first lunch, honey covered cashews. I swore that I wouldn't eat eat any granola or nuts for at least a year after I returned home.
De Kjolur road
At some point I noticed two animals running across the road. I knew there were polar foxes in the area but they seemed too small for that. Curious what they were, I check out the rocks by the side of the road.
The road with the strange animals
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It were polar foxes after all, they were about the size of a cat. I noticed at least two, but they were too fast to take a good photo. Eventually I did manage to get close enough to take a picture, which was pretty cool.
A photo of the rocks, only after returning home did I notice there are 3 foxes in it.
After the foxes I walked for another hour before my second lunch: peanuts. The following hours I took a lot of breaks because I didn't have any energy left. I also passed an emergency shelter.
The emergency shelter in the distance
The Arnarbaeli shelter
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Around 5 it was only 9 more kilometers until the bus stop, so I could call it a day. I had walked around 34 km today and 95 km in the past 3. Those had been the toughest of all, but I was glad I had decided to hike a few more days. The polar foxes alone already made it worth the effort.
The sun came through the clouds
In the distance is the glacier from which the Kjolur road derives its name
With journeys like this it's always good to keep going at least a few more days than you would like to. Otherwise you'll want to go back as soon as you get home. Hiking has been really great but I was glad life would be a bit easier after the follow day. I hoped I would reach the bus stop in time.
The last wild camping spot of this vacation
As today was (hopefully) the last day of hiking it was time for the crème de la crème of expedition meals: 'Moose-gourmet-mix'. It contained macaroni, herbs, 10% mouse meat, blueberries, carrots, mushrooms, bell pepper, and tomato
The luxurious expedition meal
After cooking it
The moose meat had a strong flavour, it basically tastes exactly like you would think moose would taste like. A kind of tundra, steppe, pine forest flavor. It also was pretty tough. What a feast.
Distance walked: 34 km